(a) Technical Field
The present invention relates to a method for detecting a combination of compounds contributing to malodor from an air conditioner, a method for reproducing the malodor and preparing a corresponding malodor composition.
(b) Background Art
Clean air is an essential element for the maintaining human health and well-being. Two important factors that lead to unsatisfactory interior air quality in an airtight building are the building itself producing a substantial amount of air pollutants that need to be removed or diluted; and odor generated as a result of human activities.
An air-cooling system lowers interior temperature and optimizes interior environment through air conditioning which changes air temperature, humidity, flow and cleanliness to more favorable conditions. Increasingly, air-cooling systems are being used to improve the standard of living. Although the air-cooling systems have been improved functionally over time, problems remain to be solved in terms of interior air quality. In the past, lowering interior temperature was viewed as one of the most fundamental and important functions of the air-cooling system. However, currently, health-related aspects such as interior air quality and odor may also be regarded as important functions of air-cooling systems. In particular, complaints regarding interior air quality include offensive odor such as malodor, foul odor, foot odor, and the like. To solve the odor problem, it may be necessary to analyze the odor-causing substances and understand the fundamental cause of the odor.
Fungal and bacterial metabolites have been known to be a main cause of odor from an air conditioner, however, the type and the amount of metabolites produced from the microorganisms may remain unclear. Additionally, since it is unclear specifically what compounds cause the offensive odor, it may be necessary to understand the type of compounds that contribute to the malodor from the air conditioner.